Overview

• Peter Reynolds, 80, and Barbie Reynolds, 76, were detained on 1 February while traveling to their home in Bamyan province and were released on Friday, the UK Foreign Office confirmed.
• The couple left Afghanistan on a flight to Doha after Qatari-facilitated negotiations, according to diplomatic sources.
• They were initially held at Kabul’s maximum-security Pul-e-Charkhi prison before being transferred to the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence, with no public explanation for their detention.
• United Nations human rights experts warned in July that the couple’s physical and mental health was deteriorating rapidly and that they were at risk of irreparable harm.
• The Reynolds have lived in Afghanistan for about 18 years, running Rebuild, an education and training initiative, as their family repeatedly pressed for their release.